


no bones about it

by orbitalknight



Category: Power Rangers Dino Thunder
Genre: Fossil Hunting, Implied Relationships, M/M, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-19 12:41:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22710979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orbitalknight/pseuds/orbitalknight
Summary: In the middle of a scientific slump, Tommy Oliver and Anton Mercer decide they might need some fresh air.The air on a fossil dig is not so fresh as hot and dusty.Hopefully the concept still applies.
Relationships: Anton Mercer | Mesogog/Tommy Oliver
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7
Collections: Ranger Romance Ficathon 2020





	no bones about it

**Author's Note:**

  * For [borrowedphrases](https://archiveofourown.org/users/borrowedphrases/gifts).



The open-top Jeep bumbled over the ever so slightly rocky terrain, tires kicking up dust, the engine’s mechanical orchestra filling the silence of the wide-open landscape. 

Tommy Oliver drove with one hand across the window frame, eyes on the horizon. In the passenger seat, Anton Mercer leaned in the direction of his own window, a frown drawn tightly across his lips. He was dressed perhaps too formally for a fossil digging expedition, even if by now his suit jacket lay discarded on the floor of the passenger seat. 

“Listen, Anton,” Tommy decided maybe he’d have to do his part to fill the silence occupying the vehicle, “You don’t seem to stoked to be here, and I’m pretty sure we could secure you a ride with air conditioning. Do you want me to pull over so you can tag out?” 

Anton heaved a sigh, adjusting his cufflinks. Though incredibly impractical for a fossil dig, the cufflinks were thematically appropriate-- they were shaped like T-Rex skulls, and the jaws even moved. Tommy knew this because he had a matching set collecting dust somewhere at this very moment. They'd been a gift, something to start out this project of theirs on the right foot. And sure, it was pretty bold to be studying combining dinosaurs and technology if you weren't building animatronics for the outside of a museum, but they were damn well willing to try. 

Still, the project had hit a slump. They were in the scientific equivalent of a writer's block. And paleontology wasn't quite like geology where you could sometimes lick your specimen for an epiphany. So they'd decided to get hands-on out in the field again, fresh air and hot sun, sweat and spit and bones. Tommy had been surprised at how receptive to the idea Anton had been considering that Mr. Mercer had largely given up fieldwork when they'd taken up the project. It wouldn't be their first dig together, but it still felt like ages since the last one. 

"I was under the impression you liked company, Tommy," said Anton, currently.

'Yeah," Tommy said, "But usually the thing with company is it likes me back." 

"What, and you think I don't?" Something like a smile in Anton's voice.

"Well, it's me or the weather." 

That got a laugh, which was surprising. "Then we'll call it the weather." 

"You sure you don't want to swap rides, then?" 

"I'm sure." Anton sat up straight in his seat, clearing his throat. "Remind me why you picked out this dig site in particular?"

"Heard they had some good finds out here last week, mostly. I was hoping we could catch those folks on their way out and they'd point us in the right direction. We're only out here for the weekend, so we better make the most of it." 

"I am sorry about that," Anton's gaze drifted out the window again, "But I still don't think we could spare more time outside of the lab." 

"I'm not too worried about it," Tommy shrugged, "Digging's always a gamble. Even with a couple months we might not find anything." 

Anton's expression turned slightly pained at that remark. "Then let's hope luck is on our side." 

Tommy and Anton arrived at the dig site proper ahead of the rest of the entourage that had been deployed for this scientific venture. There were already tents set up on the dirt and sand when they arrived, a sign that Tommy's idea about the dig team from before still being around had been on the money. Their equipment wasn't quite as nice as what Anton had in the other cars, but Tommy was pretty sure they could get right to work with the toolbox he had in the trunk. It was funny that he had the hammer and brush and chisel you'd need to clean up a fossil in a bed of stone back there, but he still hadn't gotten around to throwing the kind of wrench you'd need to fix a flat tire in with the other tools. 

The most activity on the dig site seemed to be centered around a pickup truck, and after a decent enough parking job Tommy jogged over to get the scoop from the people gathered. They were loading up a bone dunked in plaster, and after a bit of conversation he found it had come from some kind of hadrosaur. That seemed pretty promising, even if not so carnivorous. The Honest Quarry wasn't a site that Tommy considered himself particularly familiar with, and it was always good to chat up the people who were more familiar with the area before literally digging in. What he gathered is that they'd had the best luck a little further in, and maybe spotted a promising spot about a mile outside of the campsite. The drive up had left Tommy feeling a little stiff, and he figured a walk wouldn't be so bad at all. 

Anton had climbed out of the car and was leaning against the door frame on the passenger side, checking something on his phone. Whatever it was he did not seem to be pleased about it. 

He didn't feign a more pleasant disposition at Tommy's approach. "The rest of the cars are going to be late. They've been held up by wildlife." The scowl leaked into Anton's voice. 

"No problem," Tommy said, lifting the door of the trunk, "I was gonna take a walk, anyway. Care to join me?" 

Anton gave his phone one more menacing look, as if he could intimidate it into giving him better news. He sighed again. "I can't say I find the idea of standing around here instead very appealing." 

They set off past the tents and other cars, shoes crunching against the dirt. The heat seemed to rise ever more persistently off the ground, and Anton rolled his sleeves up past the elbow, popping off the cufflinks to deposit them in the pocket of his shirt. Tommy hazarded a glance in Anton's direction, and for a second the man next to him wasn't some big-shot ceo, he was just a scientist poorly dressed for the field, a fresh face on a new dig. It was nostalgic, and just a little bit charming. 

"Say, Anton," Tommy bounced the toolbox over his shoulder like he was carrying lunch for a field trip, "Remind me what your favorite dinosaur is?"

**Author's Note:**

> hey, i hope you enjoyed this! 
> 
> i recently rewatched all of dino thunder for the first time since i was a kid, and it really is such a fun show.  
> this was also a great excuse to use all of my paleontology knowledge ... thank you for that!
> 
> happy valentine's day!


End file.
